R · I · P
Babbage's
1983–1999
“The mall computer-game store before the giant.”
Stores
The mall software-and-games shop from the floppy-disk era — walls of shrink-wrapped PC boxes, console cartridges behind the counter, and the strategy guides you flipped through for hints. Named for computing pioneer Charles Babbage, it was where a kid's PC-game obsession got fed. Through a chain of mergers it became part of what is now GameStop by the end of the '90s.
▸ The soundtrack of its lifetime
Did you go to Babbage's? What do you remember?
The drive, the dance, the heartbreak, the summer. Add a memory of Babbage's.
Community Memories
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⚰️ Also gone
R · I · P
Woolworth's
1879–1997
“The five-and-dime with the lunch counter.”
Stores
R · I · P
Service Merchandise
1934–2002
“Fill out the slip, wait for the conveyor.”
Stores
R · I · P
Circuit City
1949–2009
“The big-box electronics trip.”
Stores
R · I · P
RadioShack
1921–2015
“The store with a part for everything.”
Stores